FC Chapman
Matthew Frame | coach = | currentleague = League A | currentposition = | lastseason = | lastleague = League A | lastposition = 1st | current = | website = | firstgame = | largestwin = | worstdefeat = | topscorer = | fansgroup = | honours = | American = }} FC Chapman is a professional football club based in Chapman, St. Gregory. The team plays in League A of the St. Gregory Football Association and are defending champions of both League A and the SGFA Cup. FC Chapman joined the SGFA in 1981 for its third season, backed by the city of Chapman and considerable funding from a local media mogul. Those relationships have remained in place ever since, with FCC remaining the only team in the city and enjoying enormous fan support as a result. The media empire that funded the club in its early years still remains its chief sponsor. The club is one of the most successful in Gregorian football history, having won 8 League A titles (second-most of any club) and 6 SGFA Cups (most). FC Chapman play their home games at the 38,000-seat Cable Millennium Stadium, which opened in 1998. History Early years Football had been played in Chapman at an amateur level for more than 40 years when the SGFA was established in 1979. The city and surrounding communities in Starrs County were originally home to predominantly English-speaking settlers with some French speakers migrating from the western part of the island, and as such football became the preeminent sport in the region. In September 1979, the City of Chapman lodged a bid to have a club accepted into the SGFA for the 1980-81 season, however the association initially rejected the bid. The city would lodge another application with the SGFA nine months later, in June 1980, this time after reaching a deal with Goldsmith Broadcasting, Inc., founded by American expatriate Paul Goldsmith. That company would later reincorporate in 1988 as Millennium Communications to become the first cable television provider in the Caribbean. Goldsmith's backing of the Chapman bid opened the door for negotiations between Goldsmith and the SGFA that eventually led to the first TV broadcasts of the SGFA Championship (now League A) in 1985. In December 1980, the SGFA announced the formation of the SGFA Cup. With only six professional clubs entered in the competition, and needing eight teams for a knockout format, the SGFA granted Chapman an entry that would represent the city in the inaugural tournament. The club was named Chapman Amateurs and made up of players from the amateur league system in Starrs County. They, along with a Warner Bay-based team called Barbarians F.C., made up the field of eight teams for the 1980-81 SGFA Cup. Chapman Amateurs played what would ultimately be their only match as an entity on March 14, 1981, a 3-1 loss away to that year's league champions, Zane Hills. At the conclusion of the season, in May 1981, the SGFA announced that a deal had been struck between themselves and the partnership of Goldsmith and the City of Chapman that would allow for a Chapman-based entry to join the SGFA in time for the 1981-82 season, which would begin in November of that year. The club, 60% owned by Goldsmith and 40% by the city, was named Football Club of Chapman and officially shortened to FC Chapman. FC Chapman played their first league match on November 7, 1981, losing 3-2 away at West Bonneville. Their first victory came three weeks later, on November 28, when they defeated Cape Wells Wanderers 2-0 at home. They would go on to finish their inaugural season sixth in the league out of eight teams. Their first major scalp came in the opening round of the 1981-82 SGFA Cup when they avenged the previous season's loss to Zane Hills, winning 2-1 away at Barry Park to set up a semi-final encounter with West Bonneville, which they lost 2-0. Brian Cleland years (1992-2012) In 1992, the club hired Scotsman Brian Cleland as manager, who was given the task of bringing FC Chapman its first trophy. They had not finished higher than 5th in League A in their first eleven years, and support for the club was beginning to wane. In Cleland's first season, 1992-93, Chapman finished 6th in League A but reached the 1993 SGFA Cup Final, where they faced a New Castle side that had won four league titles and two cups in the previous seven seasons. Despite being underdogs and facing plenty of early pressure from the Bonneville club, Chapman held out for a 1-1 score at the end of regulation, then won the match in the final minute of extra time through John Gamble to give Chapman their first silverware. In 1994, Cleland oversaw the establishment of the FC Chapman Academy to groom local talent into future players for the club. The academy was one of the first of its kind in St. Gregory. During the 1995-96 season, Cleland promoted the first academy graduate, 19 year-old Jarrod Shannon, to the first team. Shannon scored with his first touch after coming on as a substitute in a win over Midland International and would become the face of the new generation of FC Chapman. The club went on to win their first League A championship that season and also reached their second SGFA Cup Final, but lost to Banks City. They avenged the Cup final loss by defeating City in the 1996 SGFA Shield and finished as League A runners-up the next two seasons, 1996-97 and 1997-98, before claiming a second League A title in 1998-99. In that year, they defeated New Castle 2-1 in the SGFA Cup Final to capture the club's first ever league and cup double. Another League A title followed in 2000-01, however the following season, Shannon collapsed midway through a match against Holland County and was later diagnosed with chronic fatigue syndrome. He spent the next four years in treatment and rehabilitation, making only short appearances on the field, and the club would not win the League A title again until his return in 2005-06. Return to success (2012-) After two years in a row finishing runners-up behind Bonneville United, Cleland stepped down as manager of the club on July 2, 2012, following a 20-year tenure at the position. Cleland appointed his former assistant, Matthew Frame, to replace him. Frame's first act as manager was to sign former Bonneville United striker Kane O'Bray, who was out of contract, on September 19. This was seen as controversial by media and many fans as O'Bray had spent 12 years with United and transfers between the two rival clubs are rare. Chapman finally returned to the summit of Gregorian football in 2013-14, winning the League A and SGFA Cup double for the third time in club history and their first silverware in four years. Colors, crest and nickname Since the club's inception in 1981, the team have played in golden yellow kits with green trim. The colors were chosen to represent the sunshine and the mountains that define the landscape of central St. Gregory. The eagle, native to the area, was chosen as the club mascot, which led to the team being nicknamed the Golden Eagles. The crest, initially a shield with the letters FCC, was redesigned in 1993 to incorporate an eagle. It was modernized again in 2011 to mark the club's 30th anniversary. 'Kits' Originally, FC Chapman's jerseys were golden yellow with green stripes. This design was replaced in 1995 with the multiple stripes replaced by a single green stripe down the center of the jersey. The club won their first League A championship in the first season with the new design, and it has remained in place since. Chapman usually play in black or purple away kits. A dark blue away kit was used for one season, 1999-2000, but fans rejected the color as being too close to rivals Bonneville United. In 2014, the club unveiled a new green third kit for the upcoming season. It marks the first time Chapman have worn a green kit. The club's uniforms are currently supplied by Nike. The shirt sponsor is Cable Millennium. Support As one of the longest-tenured and most successful clubs in the SGFA, FC Chapman have built a strong fan following all over St. Gregory. They have the third highest average all-time attendance in Gregorian football and regularly attract over 35,000 fans to Cable Millennium Stadium. The club recognizes The Eagles' Nest as its official supporters' club. Fans in all sections of Cable Millennium Stadium are encouraged to wear yellow or gold attire to home matches, leading to the stadium being dubbed "the Yellow Hell" by fans and media. Rivalries :See also: Bonneville United-FC Chapman rivalry FC Chapman's traditional rivals have been Starrs County, based in nearby Mount Harcourt, less than 50 miles from Chapman. Although matches between the sides have been sparse in recent years with County's absence from League A, the rivalry remains heated. The teams last met in the quarter-finals of the 2013-14 SGFA Cup, with the match held in Mount Harcourt. Chapman won the match and went on to win the Cup title. The club's most competitive rivalry nowadays is with Bonneville United. Since United's inception in 1988, the two clubs have combined for 17 of the 26 League A titles awarded. Both clubs are perennially in the top three and the matches between the two often decide the championship. Players 'Current squad' : As of October 4, 2014 'Retired numbers' : '''9' - Jarrod Shannon, forward (1995-2013) 'Former players' :Further information: Category:FC Chapman players Honors * League A: 8 :1995-96, 1998-99, 2000-01, 2005-06, 2008-09, 2009-10, 2013-14, 2014-15 * SGFA Cup: 6 :1992-93, 1998-99, 2002-03, 2008-09, 2013-14, 2014-15 * SGFA Shield: 8 :1996, 1997, 1999, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2009, 2010 Category:FC Chapman Category:Club pages